Red River by Michael Schlesinger

Red River By Michael Schlesinger Ask anyone with even a passing knowledge of film who the greatest director of westerns is, and almost invariably the reply will be John Ford. Second greatest? Now it gets tricky. Modernists will say Leone or Peckinpah, auteurists Anthony Mann or Budd Boetticher, B-western dev- otees Joseph Lewis or William Witney. But more often than not, the answer will be Howard Hawks. The power of reputation! In his entire 45- year directing career, Hawks only com- pleted four (five if you count “The Big Sky;” I don’t). But their impact continues to define him as one of the category’s lead- ing artists—and “Red River” was as bold a genre debut as one could imagine. Much of this was serendipity: The Golden Age of the Western was just beginning, John Wayne at 39 was entering his peak years as a star and actor, and a young fella making his screen debut turned out to be Montgomery Clift. The stars were in align- ment, but the path was still filled with rat- tlesnakes. Hawks, never comfortable as a cog in The Machine, decided to produce it himself, shooting mostly in Arizona with thousands of cattle to recreate the historic first drive This ad for the film appeared in the October 1948 issue of Screenland. from Texas to Abilene via what became Courtesy Media History Digital Library known as the Chisholm Trail. It cost him an insane $2,840,000; even with the Duke in the lead, it was a fearsome gamble. paternal to stern to frightening and most stops in between. One of his finest moments comes while talk- Borden Chase wrote the initial draft, from his ing to Joanne Dru, who has a gun hidden in her arm “Saturday Evening Post” serial, but treated every sling. Eventually he tells her, “You can take that gun request for change as a spit in the face; Hawks final- out now.” She does, and then he casually drawls, ly turned to Charles Schnee to craft the script. Even “Wouldn’t-a done ya any good” as he tosses out his so, it was essentially “Mutiny on the Bounty”: Wayne own pistol, which he’d been holding unseen under grows increasingly tyrannical and unhinged during the table. It’s a positively chilling delivery. the months-long trek, forcing Clift to eventually lead the other hands into leaving him behind so they can Clift is remarkably relaxed, especially bantering with safely finish the job. Wayne, unsurprisingly, vows pal John Ireland, and the supporting cast is filled revenge. with familiar folks: Walter Brennan, Harry Carey pere et fils, Noah Beery Jr., Hank Worden, Tom Tyler, Not since he had become a star had he gone this Paul Fix and Glenn Strange. (In a nifty touch, all the dark. Visiting the location, Ford famously muttered, “I men wear different hats, making them easily distin- never knew the big son-of-a-bitch could act.” Indeed, guishable.) Though Brennan is his usual grizzled Wayne is simply tremendous, going from romantic to comic relief, he does play much of it straight; one of his key lines is a simple, direct, “You was wrong, Mr. Thing,” thus launching his own directorial career.) Dunston,” and it carries the weight of a lifetime of wis- dom. Sadly, it turned out to be the Careys’ only film That might have been the end of it, but it started a together, though they share no scenes; Senior whole new controversy, one that persists to this day. passed away soon after, before it was released. We now have two distinct cuts, which Mast dubbed “The Book Version,” in which scenes are separated For the women, he selected newcomer Dru and rising by written pages, and “The Voice Version,” with tran- star Coleen Gray—and you might spot Shelley Win- sitions handled by Brennan’s narration. This latter ters as an extra. (Supposedly she and Wayne were was prepared for overseas, because it’s easier to dub having it on inside a covered wagon between set- voiceovers in another language than to try and subti- ups.) Dru earns her place in the Hawks Women Hall tle or replace written material. However, it was done of Fame for the moment when she takes an arrow in using the dupe negative with Hughes’ final reel, not the shoulder without even flinching, but she was also Hawks’; the camera negative remained untouched. shredded for her climactic scene, which many find silly. Hawks believed it was foolish for someone to Now this is where it gets dicey. Almost everyone be- learn a lesson only to be killed immediately afterward, lieves that the longer “Book” version is the definitive and ultimately his decision was the correct one, one, as it represents Hawks’ original intention. But a though he later conceded she overacted. handful of folks, notably Peter Bogdanovich, think the shorter “Voice” version is the correct one (he bases He also had magnificent help from cinematographer this largely on a 1972 interview with Hawks, when the Russell Harlan, who produced some of the finest director, already infamous for spinning tales, was 76 B&W work ever, especially in the celebrated funeral and in declining health). Buffs will fight over this till the scene where a cloud passes over a mountain in the end of time—Mast, for one, notes that unlike the third- background—Hawks saw it approaching and said, person viewpoint of the book, Brennan’s narration “We’re shooting now,” instructing the actors to just presents scenes his character could not possibly move their lips and “we’ll make the sound after- have witnessed—but even if the dust never settles, wards.” (And that famously long pan at the start of the we should always be grateful that both survive for us drive is in fact faked: if you look ver-r-ry closely, you to enjoy. can see a matte line every time a fence post passes by.) And Dimitri Tiomkin wrapped it all up with a soar- The greatness of “Red River” is that, like most classic ing score, punctuated by a male chorus, that remains movies, it is foremost a tale well told. Everything else, one of his most cherished works; Hawks liked the from Biblical interpretations (crossing the Red River = main theme so much he later reused it, with lyrics, in crossing the Red Sea) to the symbolic bracelet that “Rio Bravo.” passes among five different characters to the distinc- tive “Red River D” belt buckle, which Wayne wore in Yet Hawks’ real ace-in-the-hole was editor Christian subsequent westerns and has been reproduced for Nyby, who came through when the chips were really the consumer market, simply add grace notes to its down. (It was in post-production for so long that Clift’s overall impact as a masterpiece of adventure. A big, next film, “The Search,” was released first.) But just sprawling bear of a film, much like its star, it should as it was finally about to open, disaster struck: be treasured like a good Swiss watch or a woman Howard Hughes, who’d never forgiven Hawks for from anywhere. walking off “The Outlaw,” slapped an injunction against “Red River,” claiming Hawks had plagiarized the ending. It was a nuisance suit, obviously, but the The views expressed in this essay are those of the author and do not release could not be delayed. (The foundering United necessarily represent the views of the Library of Congress. Artists also desperately needed a hit.) Nyby suggest- ed letting Hughes re-edit the final reel. With nothing to lose, Hawks sent it over. Soon after, Hughes sum- Michael Schlesinger is widely acknowledged as the dean moned Nyby to look at it. It was a mess, but if it got of classic film distributors, having spent more than 25 the suit withdrawn... Nyby was given permission to years at MGM, Paramount and Sony, keeping hundreds of vintage movies in theatrical release (and later DVD). He add a couple of reaction shots to cover badly mis- oversaw the completion of Orson Welles' “It's All True,” matched cuts, hundreds of new reels were printed wrote and produced the American version of “Godzilla and messengered to theatres, and to everyone’s re- 2000,” co-produced such Larry Blamire parodies as “The lief, it opened on time and was a smash, becoming Lost Skeleton Returns Again” and “Dark and Stormy Night,” the year’s third-biggest grosser. (Gerald Mast sug- and has written, produced and directed several shorts fea- gested Hawks thanked Nyby by letting him direct “The turing the faux-1930's comedy team of Biffle & Shooster. .

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